Ethical systems often rely on axioms that prescribe behavior, such as, “you must maximize happiness,” or, “you must prioritize duty”—the “must,” signifying an unjustified and fundamentally illogical leap. I derive moral behavior without using prescriptive claims, instead uncovering the logical relationship between observable phenomena. I begin with three observable premises, then derive their logical consequences.

Suffering as an objective, avoidable state.
Autonomy as the mechanism rational agents use to avoid suffering.
Universalization: the necessity of accounting for interactions between autonomous agents.

These premises form a deterministic ‘law’ (like gravity), where moral behavior emerges necessarily from logic—not because it ‘should,’ but because violating it creates contradictions. Like gravity, this principle operates universally in theory; in practice, friction (e.g., irrational agents) obscures but doesn’t negate it.

The proof relies on two foundational axioms. One, we live in a logical reality. Essentially, the universe operates deterministically; all phenomena (including human behavior) are causally determined. In layman's terms, “there are no uncaused causes.” Two, suffering exists. It is an objective state (we call it “badness”) that agents inherently avoid (e.g., pain, distress). It is not a construct, merely an observable phenomena present in all sentient life.

Centrally important deductions are summarized as follows. One, rational agents (those who are capable of goal-directed reasoning) use autonomy (information and choice) to avoid suffering. An example of this would be the choice to remove your hand from a fire because it hurts. Two, any act that violates the autonomy of an agent cannot be universalized without contradiction. If Agent A harms Agent B Agent A must accept being harmed—but this undermines Agent A’s own suffering-avoidance by creating precedent for autonomy violation to occur. In layman’s terms, this is described as, “an eye for an eye will make the whole world blind.”

This reveals the only stable strategy (one that does not undermine one’s own autonomy) as mutual respect for autonomy. This is the only strategy that doesn’t violate Nash equilibrium. Essentially, as an agent, doing harm invites retaliation while cooperation preserves your own autonomy which is necessarily a sustainable harmony unle...

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